The SCCA Continental Championship was an annual, professional, open-wheel motor racing series organized by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA), under various names, from 1967 to 1976.
The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is an American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting road racing, rallying, and autocross in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs many programs for both amateur and professional racers.
The inaugural series was staged in 1967 as the SCCA Grand Prix Championship. [1] It was open to the SCCA's existing Formula A, Formula B and Formula C cars, which were restricted to maximum engine capacities of 3 liters, 1.6 liters and 1.1 liters respectively. [2] For 1968, the SCCA amended their Formula A regulations to allow the use of production-based V8 engines, restricted to a 5-liter maximum engine capacity, in addition to the existing 3 liter engines. [2]
Formula C was an open wheeled SCCA racing class originating in the mid 1960s, derived from the failed Formula Junior class. Formula C cars were very similar to Formula Juniors; Formula B was a similar class with uprated 1600 cc engines. Formula C cars were limited to 1100 cc engines. In the SCCA today, Formula Continental is the direct descendant of Formula C.
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder V configuration engine with the cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two sets of four, with all eight pistons driving a common crankshaft. Most banks are set at a right angle (90°) to each other, some at a narrower angle, with 45°, 60°, and 72° most common.
For 1969 the series was renamed to the SCCA Continental Championship, [1] with the Formula A cars now contesting a separate feature race at each championship event and the Formula B & C cars competing in their own race for separate points. [3] The championship received substantial sponsorship from L&M Cigarettes for 1970. [4] Increased support from L&M saw the championship renamed to become the SCCA L&M Continental 5000 Championship for 1971, [5] the 5000 component of the name chosen to give the 5 liter formula greater international recognition. [6] As of 1972, the Formula A regulations still permitted both 5000cc restricted and 3000cc unrestricted engines. [7] Sponsorship by the L&M cigarette brand was not carried forward from the 1973 championship. [8]
An agreement was reached between the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and the United States Auto Club (USAC) to jointly sanction the championship from 1974. [8] The championship was renamed to the SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship and was now open to both SCCA Formula 5000 cars and USAC Championship Division cars. [9] The latter could be powered by supercharged engines of up to 2650cc, non- supercharged overhead camshaft engines of up to 4,200cc or production, non- supercharged, non-overhead camshaft engines of up to 5,250cc. [9]
The United States Auto Club (USAC) is one of the sanctioning bodies of auto racing in the United States. From 1956 to 1979, USAC sanctioned the United States National Championship, and from 1956 to 1997 the organization sanctioned the Indianapolis 500. Today, USAC serves as the sanctioning body for a number of racing series, including the Silver Crown Series, National Sprint Cars, National Midgets, Speed2 Midget Series, .25 Midget Series, Stadium Super Trucks, TORC: The Off-Road Championship, and Pirelli World Challenge.
Formula 5000 was an open wheel, single seater auto-racing formula that ran in different series in various regions around the world from 1968 to 1982. It was originally intended as a low-cost series aimed at open-wheel racing cars that no longer fit into any particular formula. The '5000' denomination comes from the maximum 5.0 litre engine capacity allowed in the cars, although many cars ran with smaller engines. Manufacturers included McLaren, Eagle, March, Lola, Lotus, Elfin, Matich and Chevron.
A supercharger is an air compressor that increases the pressure or density of air supplied to an internal combustion engine. This gives each intake cycle of the engine more oxygen, letting it burn more fuel and do more work, thus increasing power.
During 1976 USAC announced their intention to withdraw from the co-sanctioning arrangement at the end of the year. [10] The SCCA proposed to stage a ten race championship in 1977 but subsequently decided to replace the Formula 5000 Championship with a revived Can Am Series. [11] Regulations permitted the existing Formula 5000 cars, with fully enveloping bodywork, to compete in the new series. [11]
Year | Championship name | Winning driver | Car |
---|---|---|---|
1967 | SCCA Grand Prix Championship | ![]() | Lotus 41 Ford |
1968 | SCCA Grand Prix Championship | ![]() | Eagle Mk 5 Chevrolet |
1969 | SCCA Continental Championship | ![]() | Eagle Mk 5 Chevrolet |
1970 | SCCA Continental Championship | ![]() | McLaren M10B Chevrolet |
1971 | SCCA L&M Continental 5000 Championship | ![]() | McLaren M10B Chevrolet |
1972 | SCCA L&M Continental 5000 Championship | ![]() | Leda GM1 Chevrolet & McRae GM1 Chevrolet |
1973 | SCCA L&M Championship [12] | ![]() | Trojan T101 Chevrolet & Lola T330 Chevrolet |
1974 | SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship | ![]() | Lola T332 Chevrolet |
1975 | SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship | ![]() | Lola T332 Chevrolet & Lola T400 Chevrolet |
1976 | SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship | ![]() | Lola T332C Chevrolet |
The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) is a North American various auto racing sanctioning body based in Daytona Beach, Florida under the jurisdiction of the ACCUS arm of the FIA. It was started by John Bishop, a former executive director of SCCA, and his wife Peggy in 1969 with help from Bill France, Sr. of NASCAR. Beginning in 2014, IMSA is the sanctioning body of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the premier series resulting from the merger of Grand-Am Road Racing and the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón.
Formula Atlantic is a specification of open wheel racing car developed in the 1970s. It was used in professional racing through the IMSA Atlantic Championship until 2009 and is currently primarily used in amateur racing through Sports Car Club of America Formula Atlantic.
Frank Matich was an Australian racing car driver. A highly successful motor racing competitor in the 1960s and 1970s, Matich built his own range of Matich sports cars and open wheel cars, mainly to support his own career, but some cars found success with other drivers. In these and other makes he won five Tasman Series races, two Australian Grands Prix, the 1972 Australian Drivers' Championship and a number of other Australian motor racing titles.
The Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship is an American racing series using the American variation of the Formula Ford formula, "F2000", that resumed operation for the 2010 season. It is sanctioned by IndyCar, and is the first rung of the Road to Indy Presented by CooperTires.
SCCA Pro Racing is the pro racing division of the Sports Car Club of America. SCCA Pro Racing was formed in 1963, the company is a fully owned subsidiary of SCCA.
The 1967 SCCA Grand Prix Championship season was the inaugural season of the Sports Car Club of America's championship series for open-wheel, single-seat formula cars, later to be known as the SCCA Continental Championship. The 1967 championship was open to SCCA Formula A, Formula B and Formula C cars, which were limited to a maximum engine displacement of 3.0 liters, 1.6 liters and 1.1 liters respectively.
The 1968 SCCA Grand Prix Championship was the second annual running of the Sports Car Club of America's open wheel automobile racing series later to become known as the SCCA Continental Championship. The championship was open to SCCA Formula A, Formula B and Formula C cars, with Formula A expanded to include vehicles powered by 5 liter production-based engines, with the Formula A category later being renamed to Formula 5000.
The 1969 SCCA Continental Championship was the third annual running of the Sports Car Club of America's professional open wheel racing series. It was the first to carry the SCCA Continental Championship name as the previous two series had both been staged as the Grand Prix Championship.
The 1970 SCCA Continental Championship was the fourth annual running of the Sports Car Club of America's professional open wheel racing series. The championship was open to Formula A cars, with both 305 cubic inch "stock block" V8 engines and 183 cubic inch "free design" engines being permitted in that category. For the first time in the history of the series, drivers competed for the L&M Championship Trophy and a share of a $40,000 prize fund. The championship was won by John Cannon driving a McLaren M10B Chevrolet.
The 1971 SCCA L&M Continental 5000 Championship was the fifth annual running of the Sports Car Club of America's professional open wheel racing series. Liggett & Myers increased it support of the championship for 1971 through its L&M cigarette brand and now had series naming rights.
The 1972 SCCA L&M Continental 5000 Championship was the Sports Car Club of America's sixth annual professional open-wheel auto racing series. It was open to Formula 5000 cars, these being Formula SCCA Class A open-wheel, single-seat cars with 5000cc restricted design engines or 3000cc unrestricted design engines. The championship as won by New Zealand driver Graham McRae.
The 1973 SCCA L&M Championship was the seventh annual running of the Sports Car Club of America's professional open wheel racing series. The championship, which was open to Formula 5000 cars, was won by South African driver Jody Scheckter.
The 1974 SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship was the eighth running of the Sports Car Club of America's premier open wheel racing series. It was the first to be sanctioned jointly by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and the United States Auto Club (USAC), and the first to be held under the "SCCA /USAC Formula 5000 Championship" name. Sponsorship by the L&M cigarette brand was not carried forward from the 1973 championship.
The 1975 SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship was the ninth running of the Sports Car Club of America's professional open wheel automobile racing series and the second to be sanctioned jointly by the Sports Car Club of America and the United States Automobile Club. The championship was open to cars complying with the SCCA's 5 litre American stock block engine specifications and to cars complying with the USAC's 161 cid turbocharged, 255 cid DOHC or 320 cid stock block engine regulations.
The 1976 SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship was the tenth running of the Sports Car Club of America's premier open wheel racing series and the third to be co-sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and the United States Auto Club (USAC).
The 1969 Guards Formula 5000 Championship was a motor racing competition for Formula 5000 cars and cars with unrestricted racing engines of up to 2000cc capacity. The championship was organized in the United Kingdom but also included European rounds. It was the first and only series to carry the Guards Formula 5000 Championship name and the first in a sequence of seven annual European Formula 5000 Championships to be contested between 1969 and 1975. The championship was won by Peter Gethin, driving a McLaren M10A.
The 1973 Rothmans 5000 European Championship was a motor racing series for Formula 5000 cars. The series was organized in the United Kingdom by the British Racing and Sports Car Club but also incorporated European rounds. It was the fifth in an annual sequence of European Formula 5000 Championships, and the first to be contested as the Rothmans 5000 European Championship. The 1973 championship was won by Teddy Pilette, driving a McLaren M18 and a Chevron B24.
Gerald Jon 'Jerry' Hansen is a former racing driver. Hansen has won a record of 27 SCCA National Championships. Hansen has also competed in Can-Am, the Atlantic Championship, USAC ChampCar among other series.